Bowmboi

Bowmboi

Article excerpt

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by Rokia Traore (Tama Records LBLC 2594 CD)

If Mali is shaping itself up to become Africa's musical powerhouse - and it very much looks that way - then take note of Rokia Traore, the young singer-songwriter whose music is generating enough energy to power a national grid. Bowmboi is her third album, and, featuring such guest stars as singer Ousane Sacko and the Kronos String Quartet, it's already attracting worldwide attention.

And it's well deserved. Favouring simple, open instrumentation - the n'goni lute and balofon percussion create a strong but fluid structure - there's ample space for Traore to operate in. Singing in her native Bambara language (English and French translations are provided), the immediate effect is of an atmospheric lightness, characteristic of southern Malian music. …